Bernhard Goetz
|birth place = Queens, New York, U.S. |job = Electronics business owner |pathology = Vigilante |mo = Shooting |victims = 4+ assaulted |time = |charges = 4 counts of attempted murder |sentence = 8 months |capture = December 30, 1984 |status = Alive |image = Bernhard Goetz.jpg }} Bernhard Hugo Goetz Jr., aka The Subway Vigilante, is an American man who shot four teenage boys, allegedly in self-defense when they attempted to rob him. His case has become nationally infamous due to it raising awareness to crime in New York, as well as attracting both heavy praise and criticism to Goetz himself. Background Goetz was born on November 7, 1947, to Bernhard Sr. and Gertrude Goetz. His parents were both German American and Lutherans (his mother was originally Jewish, but converted to her husband's faith). Goetz was the youngest of their four children. He and his sister attended a boarding school in Switzerland starting when he was 12. Goetz returned to the U.S. to attend New York University in 1965. He earned a bachelor's degree in both electrical and nuclear engineering. Goetz joined his family when they relocated to Orlando and worked with his father's residential development business. After he was divorced from a brief marriage, Goetz moved to New York City and began an electronics business from his apartment in Greenwich Village. In 1981, Goetz was allegedly transporting electric equipment when he was attacked by three teenagers during an attempted robbery in the Canal Street subway station. They injured his chest and knee (causing permanent damage to both areas) when he was assisted by an off-duty officer. He helped the officer arrest one of the attackers while the other two escaped. The delinquent was only charged with criminal mischief and spent only half the time Goetz spent in the police station. Enraged, Goetz filed for a permit to carry a concealed firearm (which failed) and later bought a revolver while on a trip in Florida. Subway Shooting On December 22, 1984, Goetz entered a subway car, in which four teenage muggers had arrived on earlier with screwdrivers and intention to steal money from arcade machines. He entered the car and sat across one of the muggers. After making small talk with Goetz, they surrounded and blocked him off and asked him for $5 (allegedly panhandling, and not demanding). Goetz then shot the four teenagers with the revolver he purchased earlier. He briefly encountered the conductor and jumped the tracks to escape the train. He gathered some belongings and rented a car, destroyed both his blue jacket and the revolver, and stayed in several hotels under several different names. Capture, Trial, and Aftermath Goetz turned himself into the Concord, New Hampshire Police headquarters on December 31. Goetz agreed to make an audiotaped statement and did so for over two-hours. The tape was sent to a grand jury, the criminal trial, and a civil trial years later. Goetz expressed his disdain for the legal justice system, his fear of being "beaten to a pulp" and robbed, as well as his desire to murder his victims, and even a sadistic pleasure from hurting them. Goetz was moved to Manhattan on January 3, 1985 and held at Riker's Island prison hospital at $50,000 bail. He bailed himself out and was released on January 8. In 1996, Darrell Cabey sued Goetz and won $43,000,000. Goetz filed for bankruptcy, and it's unknown what happened afterward. Goetz simply insisted that any questions be asked of his attorney. Exactly 27 years after the shooting, James Ramseur, the youngest victim, committed suicide by overdosing on pills, aged 45. The case of the Subway Vigilante attracted both heavy support (some believing Goetz to have been acting in self-defense) and criticism (others saying the teenagers were merely panhandling or that Goetz's reaction was excessive, unjustifiable, and even racist). Modus Operandi Goetz shot his victims with a 38-caliber revolver, firing five shot at the muggers, one of which was left paraplegic and brain-damaged as a result. Known Victims *December 22, 1984: The New York Subway Shooting **Troy Canty, 19 **Barry Allen, 19 **Darrell Cabey, 19 **James Ramseur, 18 **Numerous Unnamed Subway Passengers *Note: This is how Goetz allegedly claimed the shooting went down, according to his site. On Criminal Minds *Season One **"A Real Rain" - Goetz was referenced in the episode when Gideon compared him and the media attention he got to the case at hand. He may have also provided a source of inspiration for the episode's unsub, Marvin Doyle - Both were vigilantes who shot their victims, attacked at least one victim who was using a public transit (Doyle killed Walter Derbin while he was driving a Taxi, while Goetz shot his victims in a subway car), were given nicknames with "Vigilante" in them, and were both praised and criticized by the media after they were apprehended. *Season Three **"True Night" - Goetz was mentioned by Rossi as an example of how the episode's unsub may have found his victims, by waiting for them to attack them first. Sources *Wikipedia's article on the shooting Category:Real People Category:Real World Criminals Category:Miscellaneous Cases Category:Incarcerated Real World Criminals Category:Real Criminals Referenced in Season One Category:Real Criminals Referenced in Season Three Category:Real Vigilantes